Fighting William Riel's Pneumonia

On Tuesday, March 19th, my dad, William Riel, arrived at the hospital and was admitted with pneumonia. Having had this illness several times over the last four years, he was able to identify it early and begin receiving treatment. However, later that day a nurse identified that William was septic. Not only was the pneumonia spreading to his other lung, he now also had an infection in his bloodstream. Thursday, March 21st, medical staff made the decision to sedate him and place him on a ventilator, which would begin doing all of his breathing for him. This is terrifying enough for any family to experience, but it hits my family especially close to home - in November of 2013, we lost our mother under similar circumstances. 

As of yesterday, William was awake and communicating by writing on a clipboard, as he was still intubated, and was even able to bring comedic relief to his Facebook page. At the same time, he is experiencing powerful coughing fits and pain throughout his body. As much as we are grateful for any improvements, he still has a very long road ahead of him - sepsis can take several weeks to be treated - and, unfortunately, bills and other daily expenses do not pause when horrible things happen.

This GoFundMe has a goal of $1,500 in order to cover upcoming rent for April as well as my father's car payment, electric bill, and groceries for my sister while she is still at home.  My dad should be able to rest and heal without financial burden, and this fundraiser will allow him to do so. 

Any small amount means the world and gets us that much closer to reaching our goal. Thank you in advance for supporting my family as we attempt to bring my dad back to health, and to his home where he belongs.